About Me

I'm an artist and educator, who is fascinated by how creativity expresses itself. I've been drawing for as long as I can remember, and love exploring new ways to put images together.
I've been married for over 15 years, and have two children (who keep me up to date on my education!)

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Wednesday, November 02, 2011

Halloween costume: Medusa Headdress

My daughter wanted to be Medusa for Halloween, so I made her a snake headdress. I used large gauge floral wire and some green fabric to make seven stuffed snakes. I sewed the wire to the seam allowance at the head of the snake before turning it so the wire was inside. Then I stuffed the snakes with polyfil and sewed the opening closed. I also sewed some of the fabric close to the wire.

I built a frame by wrapping more floral wire around my daughter's head--and leaving enough wire to adjust it later as the snake tails would add bulk. The photo shows how I would wrap the snake tails around the headband. But first I needed to paint them.I painted them with acrylic paint mixed with a fabric paint medium. When the snakes were painted I set the paint by steaming them with steam from the iron.I sewed on little beads for the eyes. The tongues are leather cord, cut at the end to make a split. (the tongues were inserted in the initial sewing)And here it is, a dramatic Medusa headdress with snakes that can be adjusted. My daughter loved changing their positions.